The Pewamo-Westphalia football program didn't have to look too far to find a new varsity head coach.

On Monday the P-W school board approved the promotion of assistant coach Jeremy Miller to the position vacated by Brad Weber, who resigned in January.

"It's quite an honor to take over this program," Miller said. "Coach Weber is a great leader and we just want to continue what he did and emulate the success we had under him."

Miller, a 1998 graduate of P-W, played football for the Pirates in high school. After spending three years on the Lakewood sideline as the Vikings' offensive line coach, he returned home to take the JV defensive coordinator job in 2008. He was promoted to varsity assistant in 2010.

With the coaching change coming from within the program, Miller said the transition has been smooth for his players, and they are continuing to work to keep the tradition of winning going.

"The kids are great," he said. "They are hitting the ground running and not missing a beat. This has been one of the best offseasons we have had with the kids hitting the weight room. They know what they have to do to win."

Weber said with the hiring of Miller, the program will be in good hands.

"I am extremely confident in Jeremy as the head coach," Weber said. " He played football here and has coached her for five years. He knows what it takes to be successful and I am excited to see what the team does over the next few years."

Weber resigned his position in January to open time up for his family. With his two daughters becoming more involved in activities on the weekends, Weber said he wanted to be able to spend more time with them.

"I have two daughters that are getting involved in more things and it's hard to be a part of their activities when we have weightlifting sessions on Saturday," he said. "I can't ask the football players to be there if I'm not, so I decided I needed more time for my family."

During his time as the head coach of the Pirate football program, Weber's teams combined for a record of 34-13 (.723). The last two seasons, the Pirates have gone 22-4, advancing to the Division 7 state finals in 2011 and the semifinals last year.

Each of the last two years have ended with P-W falling in the playoffs to the eventual state champion.

Along with the on the field success, P-W Athletic Director Todd Simmons said Weber has done a good job working with his players.

"Coach Weber has done a tremendous job, not because of the state finals and semifinals appearances, but because of what he has done with the kids," he said.